Giant dodder vs Green Sea Turtle

Cuscuta reflexa compared with Chelonia mydas

Key Differences

• Giant dodder is Least Concern while Green Sea Turtle is Endangered.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Giant dodder	Green Sea Turtle
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Reptilia (Reptiles)
Order	Solanales (Solanales)	Testudines (Turtles & Tortoises)
Family	Convolvulaceae	Cheloniidae (Sea Turtles)
Genus	Cuscuta	Chelonia (Green Sea Turtles)
Species	Cuscuta reflexa	Chelonia mydas

Conservation Status

Giant dodder

LC — Least Concern

Green Sea Turtle

EN — Endangered

Population: ~85.0K

Trend: Decreasing ↓

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Giant dodder	Green Sea Turtle
Diet	—	Herbivore
Average Lifespan	—	80 years
Average Length	—	1.2 m
Average Weight	—	200.0 kg

Habitat & Geographic Range

Giant dodder

Habitat

Inhabits tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests within the Indomalayan biogeographic realm.

Range

Distributed across Bhutan, Mauritius, and United States.

Green Sea Turtle

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, among 8 distinct biome types. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Distributed across Australia, Brazil, Costa Rica, Indonesia, and Mexico. Currently classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Green Sea Turtle

The green sea turtle is one of the largest sea turtles. They are named for the green color of their cartilage and fat, not their shells.